Unique Ecosystem - Birds
Cranes rarely come to the Oki Islands; so far, the white-naped crane (Antigone vipio), the hooded crane (Grus monacha), and the Siberian crane (Leucogeranus leucogeranus) have been spotted here. The sandhill crane is an extremely rare visitor to Japan, with only one or two birds being confirmed each year. But in 2012, a sandhill crane arrived in the Oki Islands and became a resident, attracting a lot of attention. The bird can be observed throughout the year in the rice paddy fields of the Goka area of Okinoshima Town, under the benevolent watch of the locals.
The sandhill crane is from North America and northeastern Siberia, and migrates to wintering grounds in the southwestern part of the Americas. This crane very rarely migrates to Japan, and the individual in the Oki Islands is considered to be a vagrant bird.
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Scientific Name
Antigone canadensis
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Classification
Family Gruidae
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Migratory Classification
Stray bird: bird that wandered to a region outside its normal habitat
